Soup Up Your Diet with a Bowl of Homemade Soup: 3 Easy Recipes

You don't have to be a football fan to enjoy a super bowl... not when we're talking about a super bowl of hot steaming soup on a chilly winter's day!

Soup can be a dieter's best friend. A bowl of vegetable-rich, nutrient-dense soup will fill you up without filling you out.

To avoid extra sodium and other unnecessary ingredients, I urge you to take a few minutes to whip up your own homemade soups.

In honor of National Soup Month, I turned to Diet-to-Go's registered nutritionist, Rebecca Mohning, for three great, easy to make soup recipes.

Easy Vegetable Soup

1.5 quarts of water

2 quarts of tomatoes

2 quarts of green beans

1/2 cup quick pearl barley

2 quarts of carrots

2 cups celery

2 cups onions

Simply add water to vegetables and barley and bring to a boil. Then simmer for 15 minutes and serve. Makes 4-6 servings.

Winter Bean Soup

24-oz. can of navy beans

6 cups water

1 cup chopped onions

8 oz. lean ham, cubed

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1 Tbsp. light butter

2 cups celery, chopped

1 cup carrots, diced

2 whole cloves

2 bay leaves

4 cups no-salt-added chicken broth

1/4 tsp. pepper

2 Tbsp. cider vinegar

If using dry beans, place beans and water in a one-gallon kettle and soak overnight. Pour off the water and drain the beans in a colander. Sauté onion, ham and garlic powder in butter until onion is tender. Combine all ingredients except vinegar in the kettle. Simmer 4 hours with dried beans or 20 minutes with canned beans. Add vinegar just before serving. Makes 8 one-cup servings.

Chicken Chili

6 chili peppers

1 Tbsp. oil

3 chicken breasts

1 1/2 cups chopped onion

3 garlic cloves, minced

4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

2 cups water, divided

1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 15.5-oz. can cannellini beans or white beans, rinsed and drained

3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. salt

3 Tbsp. reduced-fat sour cream

6 lime slices

Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook 4 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove chicken from pan. Add onion and garlic, and sauté 6 minutes or until browned, stirring frequently. Return chicken to pan. Add broth, 1 1/2 cups water and cumin, and bring to a simmer. Cook 20 minutes or until chicken is done then add chopped chilies and beans.

Combine 1/2 cup water and flour, stirring with a whisk. Stir into chicken mixture. Bring to a simmer; cook 15 minutes. Stir in salt. Spoon about 1 1/2 cups soup into each of 6 bowls; top each serving with 1 1/2 teaspoons sour cream. Serve with lime slices.

Remember soup can be your own healthy creation. All you need is a pot, some vegetables and water and just take it from there!